US smartphone shipments dip in Q3

Smartphone shipments in the US dipped 2% year-over-year (YoY) in Q3 2017 to 39.5 million units, down from 6% YoY growth and 40 million units in the year-ago quarter, according to Strategy Analytics.

The decelerating shipments growth is likely a result of a saturated US smartphone market, and confirms the US as the world's third-largest smartphone market by shipment volume after India was reported to have overtaken it it last week.

Lackluster growth in smartphone shipments was likely partly due to consumers waiting to upgrade to the next generation of iPhones. Because of high levels of smartphone saturation in the US, most shipment growth comes from users upgrading their handsets, rather than from new purchases of smartphones. And Apple released its iPhone 8 handset at the end of the quarter, meaning it was likely too soon for iPhone sales to impact overall shipment growth. Moreover, a large portion of Apple users could be waiting for the iPhone X, which was released in November.

Regardless, Apple managed to regain the top-rank position from Samsung. Q3 marked the end of Samsung's two-quarter run as the market leader. Samsung exited Q2 with a 31% share of smartphone shipments in the US — primarily because it launched its next generation of Galaxy devices during the quarter. However, in Q3, its market share dipped to 25%, while Apple captured 30% of smartphone shipments. Apple will likely continue to lead in Q4, as consumers purchase the iPhone X during the quarter.

Meanwhile, demand for low- to mid-tier smartphones could be mounting, creating space for smaller players to grab the leftovers. While Apple and Samsung control the premium market, vendors peddling lower-priced devices are making a comeback. For instance, Motorola grew smartphone shipments in the US by 91% YoY to 2 million units, creeping back into the top 5 ranks for the first time since 2015 and securing 5% of the US market in the process, up from the 2.7% in Q3 2016.